Blog

Sharon DiRusso, founder of Sharon’s Granola, has worked with an NH SBDC business advisor since late 2013, when an upsurge in her home-based business caused her to seek help. Sharon creates granola bars and snacks that are gluten-free, vegan and organically sweetened, and she is currently selling them in several stores throughout New Hampshire and Massachusetts.Read More

Sue and David McCoo of Capital Craftsman and Romance Jewelers in downtown Concord first sought advice from the NH SBDC back in 1996, though they had founded their business in 1979. In the mid-1990s, they thought they might have to close their business and liquidate their merchandise. However, after implementing the advice of Bob Ebberson of the NH SBDC, they chugged along nicely and currently employ 15 full-time staff.Read More

Dan Bellemore is the new owner of the Mont Vernon General Store, which offers everyday supplies and almost anything else a person could want. The store does gift baskets filled with local products such as jams, jewelry and local wines and Dan hopes to expand those options. Fresh deli sandwiches are also on the menu, as well as your usual General Store products.Read More

When David Lucier got the idea for opening a new store in Claremont, NH, he sought advice from NH SBDC advisors, who helped him conceptualize the idea and gave him confidence that it would work. His vision was a store selling high quality spices from around the world in an attractive retail setting.Read More

The RAS-Tech company employees 10 people at its Brentwood, New Hampshire factory, where its founder, Tom Zickell, chose to locate what was a one-of-kind business at the time in 2007. The company takes used asphalt and keeps it out of landfills by turning it into materials to be used in manufacturing and other products. Some 10 million tons of non-biodegradable asphalt roofing ends up in landfills, something Zickell recognized as a serious environmental issue. Through his company's five...Read More

When the family owners of Studley Flower Gardens of Rochester, New Hampshire started to feel the impact of the arrival of some area “big box” retailers in 2010, the company sought help from the business advisors of the New Hampshire Small Business Development Center. Together, the Meulenbroeks of Studley Flower Gardens and NH SBDC Seacoast Regional Manager Warren Daniel worked on budgeting processes, setting goals for cost sales, developing a capital improvement budget, and creating a bonus...Read More

The number of women-owned businesses in the United States continues to increase at rates that exceed the national average growth rate among all businesses, according to this latest report from American Express OPEN. However, those women-owned businesses remain smaller than the average in terms of number of employees. Of the 9.1 million women-owned firms operating in the U.S. today, 7.9 million people are employed. This is always confusing, because they don’t include owners as employees. Maybe...Read More

Hollis McGuire, Nashua Regional Director of the NH SBDC, talks with guest host Jon DiPietro on Girard at Large. McGuire described the SBDC and its mission to assist NH businesses. Eighty percent of the businesses SBDC has counseled are successful. They also discussed the obstacles facing start-up businesses and McGuire addressed some of the regulatory and tax burdens that impede startups. Read More

The idea of starting your own business is both exhilarating and daunting.
If you succeed, starting your own business gives you an opportunity to realize your own personal vision rather than the vision of an existing company and you benefit directly from your hard work.
But success is far from a guarantee. Fifty percent of new businesses fail in their first year and by the fifth year six in 10 businesses go under.Read More

On Wednesday, December 4th the SBDC officially launched its latest eLearning Course, "Finding Your Export Markets", with its Advisory Board, partners UNH Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics and the NH Dept. of Resources & Economic Development, and the Office of Senator Jeanne Shaheen. The course was created with funds from the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010.Read More